Health and social care secretary Wes Streeting has urged NHS leaders to prioritise patient safety during a meeting to address record winter pressures.
Over one in five patients (22%) are waiting six weeks or more for diagnostic tests, according to new analysis.
The Government has come under fire after dropping a pledge to meet the four-hour A&E waiting times target by the end of this Parliament.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has set out a ‘purposefully ambitious’ target for the NHS to carry out 92% of routine operations and appointments within 18 weeks by March 2029.
NHS A&Es have had their busiest summer ever in England with staff managing 6.8m attendances in three months, up almost by almost a quarter of a million on last year.
NHS England statistics have revealed the waiting list in May for procedures and appointments rose by 31,249 to 7.6m.
Hospital waiting lists rose to 757m in May from 7.54m in April amidst record demand.
Labour has pledged to hit the NHS 18-week treatment target within five years if elected on 4 July.
Record waiting lists have driven a 30% rise in the use of private healthcare in the UK since the pandemic, a new report has revealed.
Hybrid working – allocated to offices in Coventry or York£29,314 - £34,997 per annum
Sandwell, West MidlandsBand G SCP 32-37 (£41,511 - £46,731 per annum)
Hybrid working – allocated to offices in Coventry or York£29,314 - £34,997 per annum
Sandwell, West MidlandsBand G SCP 32-37 (£41,511 - £46,731 per annum)